Garage Storage Discussion

[Shopz2Much]

Any folks in the Northern states have any suggestions? My garage is not heated or insulated and so it gets VERY cold out there December - March.

Thoughts on keeping shampoo, conditioner, canned goods, condiments etc. out there? I won't keep paper products out there in the winter, would be too attractive to field mice.

Thanks!!!

[too-old-now]

Paper products would be fine if stored in plastic storage containers.

The same for canned goods, but I would avoid glass or some plastic.

We stockpile in the basement, it's not heated but it is dry, and it doesnt freeze

[cutenirish]

maybe pour some of the shampoo or conditoner out so when the bottels explaned they don't explode :)

All my stuff is in my basement which has heat vents but they stay closed all the time :) so does sort of heated count-- it's nice and dry down there as well WOO HOO (thanks to new draintile two weeks ago).

[hotcouponmama]

We don't get too cold here in the NW in the winter, and all my stuff is in the garage.

For pest control, we have two of those "screamer" things - don't know what they are called exactly, but they have them at HD. Basically, you plug them in the wall and they emit (maybe, don't know cause I can't hear them) a sound that drives away rodents and some insects. Seems to work cause I don't have much in the way of spiders and mice in the garage for the last several years. Guess when I see them,then I will know the screamer thing isn't screaming anymore!

[sbp]

This is a super question. We don't have a garage but we have a room out in the barn that's where we keep the big chest freezer. It's a 'room' now but really it's just a closed-in old carport with a barn door on it. Not even insulated, and little chipmunk and squirrel critters can get in, so I'm not really comfortable leaving anything out there. Right now my stockpile of Coke & Sprite 2 liters are out there, just because I don't have any room for them in my house but once it starts getting colder at night, they'll be coming in too.

[Shopz2Much]

I don't have a basement either...the house was built in the 1830's...way before the big dig trucks were invented. LOL I have like 3.5 foot crawl space down there.

Thanks for the tip on the screamers! I will check them out. My house is spider city!

[queenofthehivemomof5]

I live where it does get very cold in the winter and my garage is not heated but it is insulated and drywalled.

What I have found is that I can not store things like mayo and aerosol cans. Mayo seperates and the areosol cans can explode I guess. I store only kitchen items in my garage (food, plastic baggies, wraps, paper towels, that sort of thing). If it get REALLY cold I have has some canned goods freeze (beans and spagetti sauce) but they were fine and we just thawed the cans in some warm water and cooked as usual. No harm done.

I have not had any problem with stuff like BBQ sauce, ketchup, mustard, mirical whip, salad dressings, etc in the cold. After one run in with a mouse family getting into my oatmeal stockpile I resorted to keeping highly mouse popular foods like grains in food safe tight lidded plastic storage container (I get big 5 gallon plastic paint buckets with TIGHT lids at Home Depot and store flour, sugar, oatmeal, cornmeal, etc in them. I have had no issues with mice getting into the cereal or pasta/rices. Not had issues with mice making nesting material out of my paper towels, but of course that is a possibility.

We have 2 cats now so maybe they are keeping the mice at bay. Also in the winter my 2 dogs spend a lot of time in the garage.

[skyesmom]

Winter? What's that Shopz? We don't get that down here. Now if you had asked about storing things in the heat.... :Cow:

[Shopz2Much]

Originally Posted by skyesmom Winter? What's that Shopz? We don't get that down here. Now if you had asked about storing things in the heat.... :Cow:

Very nice, Dawn. Rub it in! I am shipping Sam to you when he starts to get his winter nuttines...

[skyesmom]

Originally Posted by Shopz2Much Very nice, Dawn. Rub it in! I am shipping Sam to you when he starts to get his winter nuttines...

That's ok - he and Mark can go play airplanes and he will have new people to torment down here. Just think.... a whole new batch of people Sam hasn't annoyed yet!